Windows Phone 8 Update 3 (GDR3)

Windows Phone 8 Update 3, formerly known as General Distribution Release 3 (GDR3), is the third and final OS update for the Windows Phone 8.0 operating system before Windows Phone 8.1.

The update has been released-to-manufacturers in September 2013 and a developer-preview version was released on October, 14th 2013. The update is meant to add new features to current devices, in addition to allowing 1080P displays and quad-core processor support (Qualcomm Snapdragon 800) for new hardware.

Update 3 will launch on with the Nokia Lumia 1520 in early November and current Windows Phone 8 devices will receive the update in the coming months. In addition to the OS update, Nokia devices will also receive the Lumia Black firmware update.

Windows Phone 8 Update 3 changelog (OS build 10501, 10512)

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We’re less than a week away from seeing Windows Phone 8.1 publically unveiled. All Windows Phone 8 handsets are able to upgrade to the latest and greatest version of Windows Phone when it becomes available. However, there are customers out there still waiting to get Update 3 and Lumia Black. Our friends using the Nokia Lumia 620 on Telus can now check that off their list. The update is rolling out for them.

Remember Sprint? They don’t carry too many Windows Phone devices, but they have a few and one just picked up a nice update. If you’re rocking a Samsung ATIV S Neo on Sprint you now have Update 3 ready to download. The update is rolling out as we type.

Nokia has today released an update for Play To, taking the app up to version 2.2.3.2. This release includes the much anticipated fix for those running the GDR3 Developer Preview (Update 3), which saw the app lose all functionality and be rendered useless. It was only last week we covered news that the company would be releasing a patch to help users out, so we see this as a positive turn around.

In case you missed it yesterday, Nokia announced that their Lumia Black update was beginning to rollout. That update is a double punch firmware (Lumia Black) and OS refresh (Update 3). But there’s one question a few of you submitting to the site that has caught our attention: What do those little arrow mean for the system icons?

Many of you have figured it out, but for those who haven’t we have the details.

If you’re like us, you’re pretty excited about getting a new OS and firmware update this afternoon from Nokia on your AT&T Lumia 1020. While we’ve known that Lumia Black (new Nokia firmware) and Update 3 (new version of Windows Phone 8) were on the horizon, no one saw them being released this early. But you may be asking yourself, what’s new?

Luckily for you, we have all the details. You don’t have an AT&T Lumia 1020? Don’t fret. Your update will be coming too, but for now, you can crib off of this list to get an idea of what’s coming.

It’s been a busy day for Windows Phone OS updates. Earlier we sat AT&T customers pick up firmware and software updates for their Nokia Lumia 1020s and Lumia 1520s. The Lumia 1020 is currently getting the Lumia Black update (and an OS patch for Update 3) on Windows Phone 8, while the Lumia 1520 is getting a firmware update. Not to be left, there’s an update for the Nokia Lumia 925 on T-Mobile. What’s new?

In a surprise announcement, Nokia and AT&T have pushed out the Lumia Black update and new OS patch (Windows Phone 8 Update 3) for the Lumia 1020. In addition, there is a new firmware release for the Lumia 1520.

The updates are now live and going out to both devices. Here are the changes:

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Earlier this week, the big news for Windows Phone users was the refresh for Update 3. More specifically, if you’re participating in the Preview for Developers program, you not only get the latest access to the Windows Phone 8 OS, but you also get updates.

That update was fascinating only because it was speculated that Update 3 preview was the final release. Technically, this is true as the Lumia 1520 shipped with OS 10517. But Microsoft had some OEM fixes and minor tweaks to add for other phones, so the latest version is 10521. No new features are present, so you can stop looking yesterday.

This news means Microsoft may on occasion push out patches for the OS, although we’re not expecting that to happen too often. Still, if you want to keep abreast of the latest info, you just head to Windows Phone Central, right? The one problem is, we tend to publish a lot of articles, and many of you may miss that post (by the amount of tips we received after our story, that’s more than obvious).